1. Toyin Ojih Odutola, Ilé Oriaku, Exhibition view, Kunsthalle Basel, 2024, Photo: Philipp Hänger / Kunsthalle Basel
Geometries of meanings
Toyin Ojih Odutola, an artist known for her intricate and evocative portraiture, is exhibited for her first solo exhibition in Switzerland at the Kunsthalle in Basel. This show features a new body of work comprising twenty-seven drawings that weave together different scenes and narratives.
Central to this narrative are the profound themes of language and grief, explored with a remarkable depth of emotion and sophistication.
Ojih Odutola's monumental and detailed works are crafted using a diverse array of materials, including charcoal, chalk, and pastel on paper, linen, or canvas board, as well as colored pencil and graphite on Dura-Lar film.
Her mastery in utilizing these materials brings a unique texture and vibrancy to her pieces, enhancing the storytelling quality of her art. By engaging with the grand tradition of portrait painting and integrating it with her distinctive drawing practice, Ojih Odutola captures the nuanced essence of her characters.
Each piece in the exhibition not only reflects her technical prowess but also her ability to convey complex human experiences and emotions through the fine qualities of her subjects.
Lifelike
The notion of portrait is essential to Toyin Ojih Odutola work, thus creating a dynamic space populated by a diverse array of unique characters. These characters change attire, apply makeup, gaze into mirrors, converse with others, or simply rest in contemplation, preparing to move, perhaps to dance. Vibrant outfits and bare skin create stark contrasts against colorful and blurry backgrounds, yet seamlessly blend into the set design.
This interplay turns the viewer into an onlooker, witnessing intimate moments of preparation and introspection within the troupe’s house. In her work, she weaves these scenes into a rich tapestry of narration, transformation, ritual, and bold artistic expression, highlighting the multifaceted nature of portraiture.
When lines are meaning meets
2. Toyin Ojih Odutola, Ilé Oriaku, Exhibition view, Kunsthalle Basel, 2024, Photo: Philipp Hänger / Kunsthalle Basel
In the show, visitors are welcomed into a space that evokes a Mbari house, a sacred structure rooted in the traditions of the Nigerian Igbo community. This space is crafted to honor the goddess Ala, who protects the Owerri Igbo tribe from supernatural calamities and misfortunes.
Traditionally, Mbari houses are constructed from raw materials like clay, wood, and straw. They are adorned with figures, sculptures, geometric patterns, and wall paintings that depict spiritual or mythological themes.
In this exhibition, a grid on the wall connects the series of drawings throughout the entire space, reminiscent of the scaffolding of Toyin Ojih Odutola’s imagined Mbari house, Ilé Oriaku. Ilé Oriaku, a name paying tribute to Ojih Odutola's grandmother and uncle who belong to the Nigerian Igbo and Yoruba ethnic groups, who encapsulate familial and cultural significance. "Ilé" means "house" in Yoruba, while "Oriaku" is her grandmother’s Igbo name. Thus, each architectural space of the exhibition is designed as a distinct scene, capturing varied moments.
The first word of the exhibition
3. Toyin Ojih Odutola, Ilé Oriaku, Exhibition view, Kunsthalle Basel, 2024, Photo: Philipp Hänger / Kunsthalle Basel
In the first room of the exhibition, visitors are introduced to a poem written by Toyin Ojih Odutola's mother, Nelene. This initial encounter sets the tone for the personal narrative that unfolds throughout the exhibition.
Later, one can listen to a sound piece that combines an audio conversation with her grandmother and bird songs from her teenage home in Alabama, creating an immersive auditory experience.
This deeply personal family history, conveyed through the exhibition, illustrates how colonial forces interfere and transform the various facets of a community.
While the exhibition’s visual narrative revolves around the theme of loss, the moments of personal grief set the stage for a broader exploration of mourning and communication. By referencing various languages and narrative perspectives, the titles illustrate how contrasts between image and language can nevertheless lead to moments of convergence, weaving written words into the visual language of the drawings.
Biography
Toyin Ojih Odutola is a Nigerian American artist, born in 1985, and renowned for her multimedia drawings and works on paper. Raised in Nigeria, Ojih Odutola's was influenced by her parents, both teachers, who instilled her a profound love for learning and creativity.
In 1990, her mother relocated the family to the United States to join their father in California, marking the beginning of their new journey.
Ojih Odutola's delves into a wide range of themes, socio-economic inequality, colonialism, queer, gender theory, blackness as a visual and social symbol, and the experiences of migration and dislocation.
Her educational background includes a Bachelor of Arts degree in Studio Art and Communications from the University of Alabama, followed by a Master of Fine Arts degree from California College of the Arts.
In 2011, Ojih Odutola presented her first solo show in New York. By 2015, she held a solo museum exhibition titled "Untold Stories" at the Contemporary Art Museum St Louis.
Informations about the exhibition
Place: Kunsthalle Basel
Date: 7.6.2024 - 1.9.2024
Curator: Elena Filipovic
Ticket: Available at the front desk of the museum
Informations about the Kunsthalle Basel
Kunsthalle Basel
Steinenberg 7
CH-4051 Basel
Phone: +41 61 206 99 00
Mail: info@kunsthallebasel.ch
© Lucas GASGAR / Lucas Art Talks 2024